Moonlit Strolls
by Longlivemystories
Summary: Alucard keeps bumping into a human he finds most interesting. A polyamorous romance/action story about dracula himself, a werewolf and a half-angel
1. Chapter 1: Monday

Monday

"Have a good night, Oliver," Jake said, waving to me as he walked by my office.

"Good night," I mumbled in return, more focused on finishing the assignment that was due before I left.

I hated days like this. Days where I was given tasks that were clearly impossible to finish by the end of my shift, but where the boss still insisted I had them on her desk anyways before she came in in the morning. 3 p.m. turned quickly into 7 p.m. and I hurriedly straightened up the papers on her desk. I might just have enough time to grab something for dinner at a store before it closed. I locked her door behind me and pulled my coat over my shoulder. Shivering when the winter air hit my exposed face, I made my way towards the convenience store near by. What a freaking day to forget my winter boots, hm? This far into the season, you'd think it was habit by now.

"Oh, hiya, Ollie!" my dear friend and cashier, Sasha, greeted with a wave as I entered the warmed store.

I took a moment to appreciate the hot air blowing at the entrance and called a greeting, "Good evening, Sash. Love the hair do tonight."

Sasha was here almost every night and always had something different going on with her curly locks. Like I was talking the halls of my own home, it didn't take long for me to find the canned food aisle and I grabbed some tomato soup and crackers. A typical dinner for me nowadays.

"You're running late today, huh?" Sasha inquired, ringing up my items for the night.

I nodded, pulling my scarf closer to my face. "Ms. Juniper basically had me running laps all day," I grumbled. "Finished the last assessment not half an hour ago."

"Oh boy. Well, be careful walking home, okay? And stop taking that stupid short cut," she chided. "I swear it doesn't get to your place any quicker than taking the well lit roads."

"I beg to differ," I laughed, paying her and grabbing my bag. "Besides, any chance to avoid people is better."

"Still, just be careful, okay? There's been more and more attacks happening lately. I think it's that new drug going around," she pondered.

"You, too, Sash," I responded, waving to her as I left. "Gnight!"

I barely heard her reply before I was too far away. Well lit or not, there wasn't a lot of people out and about at this time of night, anyways. I wasn't too worried about muggings or anything like that, but the warning didn't fall on deaf ears. I had this morning's news report of yet another fatal home invasion in the back of my head and I shivered with dread. I tread carefully around ice patches and other obstacles, paying more attention to the ground than anything else as I made my way through a back alley. A noise froze me in my tracks and I slowly looked up and around. Nothing. Perhaps a cat? It was a shuffling sound, like that of feet trying to get a bearing. No, it was just a cat skittering away, probably startled by my presence. Shaking my head, I continued onward through the alley. It wasn't particularly long, but it felt doubly long tonight with that stupid warning hanging around my head.

A shift of movement on my left and, before I had time to react, I was up against a wall, my bag having had dropped to the ground. I grunted, my attacker's hand against my throat and the other holding something sharp to my side.

"Scream and I'll gut ya," he snarled.

This man wasn't very big, at least no bigger than myself, but his strength was incredible and frightening. Was he on drugs? Or was he just holding onto an adrenaline rush? Either way, my eyes swam with the pain as he bit into my shoulder. What the hell?! I fought against him, hoping I'd be able to move away at least from the knife, but there was no such luck. Fortunately, my attacker suddenly stopped what he was doing and turned to look back up the alley. Silhouetted by the lamp lights outside the alley was a rather tall man wearing a long coat and a hat. He stood silently, almost assessing the situation.

"The fuck you want?" snapped the attacker, tightening his hold on my neck.

The newcomer chuckled lowly and held up his arm. It took a second for me to realize what he was holding was a gun that could clearly do a lot of damage. I whimpered, hoping it wasn't meant for myself or that I wasn't caught in the crossfire.

The attacker threw me at the taller man, probably hoping to distract him, and I grunted in pain, feeling my wrist bend wrong. I covered my ears a little too late from the first gun shot and cringed again when another shot rang out. I heard a thump and slowly uncovered my ears, opening my eyes to see the taller man had moved over to the now fallen man. I sat up quickly, heart thumping in my chest. What the hell? I mean, I was glad I was saved, but was this guy a cop or something? I tensed when I saw the savior turn to look at me. After what seemed like hours of him just staring, he finally made his way over, picking up my grocery bag on the way.

He extended his arm and I flinched, thinking he was going to attack me, too. After a moment, I looked back over at him and he was still there, patiently holding out a hand. I hesitantly took it and he helped me back up.

"You should go to the hospital," he commented, a clear grin on his face, highlighted from the lamp posts.

"Th-thank you," I sputtered, accepting the bag when he handed it to me.

My head was spinning. This was so surreal. What just happened? Who was this guy? Who was that other guy? I saw the grin shrink somewhat on the tall man's face before my vision completely faded and I felt my world go sideways.


	2. Chapter 2: Tuesday

Tuesday

"That must have been horrifying!" Jake, my tall, tan, lean friend, exclaimed, pausing in his noon-time hair fixing to look over at me.

I shrugged, poking at my noodles, my usual lunch. The events of last night and this morning kept running through my head, like my own brain was trying to figure out if it really happened or not. The hospital said some man had brought me there last night, out of the blue, and said that I had just fainted. He left without giving any word or notice to the staff. Nothing had been stolen from my wallet, though I didn't really think anything would have been.

"I'm okay, though..." I mumbled, looking back up at my coworker as he continued to tie up his hair in a tight pony tail. "The hospital said it was probably stress that made me pass out."

"Well of course it was stress, darling!" he exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "You were attacked by a crazy druggy and some hot, hot man saved you from certain death. I'd be stressed, too."

"Oh come on... I don't even really know what he looked like, Jake.. how could I possibly know if he was hot, let alone hot, hot," I snorted, finishing my soup.

"Pleease," he purred. "Of course he was hot, hot. Some super hero saved you and you totally owe him."

"Okay, but what if I never see him again?" I countered.

"You owe him to stop taking that stupid route home," he immediately snapped. He paused. "Or... keep taking the route and maybe someone will jump you again and maybe, just maybe, hottie McHot Stuff will save you again," he snickered.

"I really don't think that's happening," I mumbled. "Are you done yet? Ms. Juniper is having a fit that I wasn't here on time this morning and I'm taking a short lunch."

"Does she know you were a little preoccupied almost dying?" he grumbled, stuffing his mirror in his bag and getting up.

"I don't think it'd even matter if she did, Jake. You know how the boss lady is," I grumbled, shaking my head. "Let's head back. I'm leaving work early anyways to get ready for a night out with Sammy," he told me excitedly.

"Are you working tomorrow?" I asked, walking with him back to our offices.

"Of course not, darling! I want to just get hammered. You should come with us!"

"Uh, I /am/ working tomorrow, so maybe not," I declined, offering him an apologetic smile.

"You don't have to get hammered to have a good time, Ollie. You went through a lot last night and I think you deserve to let loose a little bit," he admitted, rubbing my back.

Jake was the kind of friend who'd stick with you thick and thin until you did something nasty to him or any of his friends, which is why I took his words to heart. He was being honest with me in that moment and it made my heart quiver. I tried not to think about what had happened so much, but it really was sticking to me like glue so yeah, maybe I would have a couple of drinks, if only to take the edge off.

"You're right, Jake... I'll come with you and Sammy, but I'm not leaving work early. What club are you going to?"

"The Bloody Mary," he responded excitedly, practically bouncing. "You'll have so much fun, I promise."

"Yeah, yeah... see ya later, then," I sighed, watching him slip down another hallway before making my way to my own office.

Around five in the afternoon, I entered The Bloody Mary and looked around for my two friends. Surrounded by several other people from our office, I spotted Jake and Sammy cheering, looking directly at me. I waved and quietly headed over, apologizing to several people for bumping into them. Clubs weren't really my normal scene, but tonight was an exception.

"I can't believe you actually came!" Jake practically screamed over the music. "I'm so happy!"

"Th-thanks!?" I yelled, trying not to be too loud while also trying to be heard. "I can't stay too long!"

"That's okay!" Sammy responded, patting my arm. "We understand."

"We what?!" Jake yelled, already heading towards the dance floor.

Sammy, a tall, black lawyer rolled his eyes playfully and followed him out, waving to me silently. I offered a wave back and just sat down at the bar, already feeling too tired for the situation. The dark club hurt my eyes with her strobe lights and the loud music didn't make me feel any better. I leaned back against the bar, feeling my heavy eyes threatening to slide shut. Maybe I'd slip out early...

"Excuse me."

It was so sudden and so random, I didn't think the bartender was talking to me. Finally I felt a small tap on my shoulder and I turned to see a somewhat large man behind the bar offer a smile.

"Sorry, but the gentleman over there bought you a drink. Anything you'd like, he said," he explained, motioning to a man, also sitting at the bar.

He was bigger than myself with rather pale skin and black hair. I couldn't see him very well so any distinct features escaped me, but I slowly nodded.

"Uh, just a Coke, or Pepsi or something... I'm not really looking to drink anything hard tonight," I told the bartender, a little baffled that someone would really want to buy me anything.

"I hope it wasn't too lame of me to just let you get whatever," the man said, appearing somewhat suddenly to sit beside me.

"Er, no, it's okay... better than you wasting your money. Thanks, by the way," I added quickly, not forgetting my manners.

"Heh, no problem for someone so cute," the man responded. "My name is Frank Jillian," he introduced, offering a hand.

I took it to shake, however he pulled my hand up to his face and lightly kissed the back of it, watching me every second. I felt my face tint slightly, not quite used to any of this.

"O-Oliver Slater," I returned, swallowing a little harder than intended.

A chill shot up my spine and I slowly turned. The man. The savior. The... He... I slowly pulled my gaze up to his highly shaded face. Behind tilted sunglasses were oddly glowing eyes. R-Red?

"Excuse me, we're trying to talk," Frank suddenly said, jaw tense.

I looked back at him to see his eyes were, too, glowing an odd shade of red. Not again... I covered my ears just in time for a gun shot to ring out right next to me. I felt the warm spray of blood cover my arms and the back of my hands and probably much more and I thought I might vomit.

"Pleasure meeting you again, Red."

I mistook the pounding of the my heart for the pounding of the music. They were practically in sync by then. People were screaming, scrambling to get out of the club. I heard police sirens, but it was all so very dull compared to his words. They were so clear in my head I thought maybe they were my own thoughts initially. I finally returned my gaze to meet his eerie red ones. In the bare light I could see a slick grin, bearing two rows of very fine pointed teeth.

"How's your ankle?"

The quest caught me off guard and I couldn't seem to find the words to properly respond until a young, blond woman came running up to us.

"Master! We need to go! Sir Integra will be very displeased about this," she told him nervously, ringing her gloves.

His grin never disappearing, the tall man stood back up, straight and exited the club.

"See you later, Red."

The woman turned to finally see me in the last second before following after her friend. Strobe lights, loud music and the pounding of my heart were all disorienting me. I saw my vision blur and suddenly I was out. Again.


	3. Chapter 3: Wednesday

Wednesday

4 a.m.

Rigorous questioning from the police had left me exhausted, but now that I was home and in clean clothes, I found I had some problems sleeping. I kept thinking about everything, really, but the gun shot was clearest in my mind. It was so loud and so sudden that every time it would suddenly rear up, I physically jumped. Begrudgingly, I crawled out of bed and into the kitchen. Tea would probably make me feel better.

So would some intense research.

Once I had a cup of my favorite Linden tea, I curled up on the couch with my laptop. The poor thing hadn't been used in a little while and it was a damn shame. I spent a lot of money on it some time ago and barely had any time to use it due to work and being so fatigued from the day.

Okay, okay... so, what were somethings that could cause red eyes? No, not that kind of red eyes... I tapped my chin, trying to find a better way to word the question. What could cause red irises? Quite a few search results came up with albinism. I mean, maybe, if that tall guy didn't have black hair... Okay, what could cause glowing red eyes?

I choked a little bit on my tea, although I honestly should have expected it.

Vampires.

Okay, yeah, that was nuts. I rolled my eyes in annoyance. This whole thing seemed a little crazy to be honest, but what else could it be? So, yeah, fine, I'd delve into this mostly ridiculous idea. There was so many different tales and fables on vampires. Narrowing down my search, I added London to the search engine. Suddenly, news reports were coming up. The attacks? Apparently more and more people were trying to say it was vampires causing the attacks and honestly that didn't seem so far fetched considering the growing amount of evidence.

Another thought crossed my mind and I looked up that guy, Frank Jillian. He was pretty famous, it seemed. Some sort of billionaire with magic, disappearing cancer. The guy hadn't seemed so sick, but the news reports were saying there was no trace of the cancer in the autopsy. How does stage IV cancer suddenly just disappear?

I yawned and rubbed my eye tiredly. 5 a.m. now. I had to be up in an hour, so maybe another, colder shower would wake me up.

"I'm so sorry, Ollie," Jake apologized quickly and loudly as soon as I came through the door to our floor's office.

"Er... it's fine, Jake," I mumbled, downing the last of my coffee. "It's not like you knew that would happen..." I added, walking towards my office.

"But I was the one who pressured you into going last night. I really am sorry, Ollie," Jake added, a small whimper in his voice.

"Jake, please... It's... okay... Besides, he was there."

"He? As in... As in Hottie McHotStuff?" Jake inquired, perking up at this news. "How do you know? Wait a minute was he? Was he the crazy gunman?" he asked with a gasp.

"I don't know about crazy, but he was definitely the gunman," I told him, turning on my computer. "You didn't happen to get a good look at him, did you?"

"No, sorry, darling," Jake sighed softly, leaning against my door frame.

"What about that guy who was shot?"

"You mean the one who bought you a drink?" Jake clarified, tapping his chin. "Now that you mention it, no, I didn't... I only saw him after uhm... well, you know."

"That's okay..." I replied, hanging my head somewhat. "I just wasn't... well... nevermind, it's not important."

"Ollie, darling, you don't look like you got a wink of sleep last night," my friend commented, moving over to the desk. "Are you sure you shouldn't go home today?"

"No chance," I snorted. "There's just too much going on this week and Ms. Jillian would probably cut my throat if I wasn't here to get shit done."

"At least let me buy you a coffee or something. You look like you might pass out."

"Yeah, okay..."

I watched my taller friend leave, spacing out for only a moment before my phone rang. Here goes nothing.

"The wicked bitch can stand one morning of confusion, Ollie," Jake told me impatiently, watching as I clearly had no intention of stopping my work to leave for the day.

"You know she can't, Jake, now get out of here or else it'll be Sammy who's confused," I said, glancing up at him before finishing my written thought.

"You shouldn't stay so late and you know it," he mumbled, arms crossed. "Just... well-lit streets, okay?"

"Of course, mom," I responded, waving at him until he left my sights.

He was right, though. I wasn't getting much sleep, if any at all, and it felt like it was taking a toll on my performance. Surprisingly, Ms. Juniper hadn't said a word about my slacking, so maybe she did have a heart after all.

About an hour later and I finally finished the work. I laid the stack of papers on her desk and, like usual, locked the door behind me. I felt so exhausted that I might actually get to sleep tonight. The cool air hit my face again and I shivered, tying my scarf tighter around my face. At least I remembered my boots for once.

Oh shit.

I groaned, turning and heading back into the building. I had to be freaking kidding me. Of course I'd forget the notes. She'd kill me if she had to read through the thick version of my assessment that was just filled with a heavier syntax to distract the higher ups from the fact that everyone seemed to be overspending this quarter. I took the steps two at a time, the elevator having been turned off since it was after 5 p.m. I unlocked the main office door once I reached our level and hurried in.

I passed the hall to go into the bullpen and stopped. What the hell was that sound? I shivered, the suckling and squelching noises causing my stomach to churn. Did I really want to investigate? With what happened the past few times, my mind told me no, but my curiosity was apparently relentless. I slowly turned and made my way down the short hallway and into the bullpen, full of desks and chairs. There were two people at Jake's desk. One seemingly sitting on the other's lap. They were close, locked together as though locked in a very private moment. I knew I should have turned back, fearful of interrupting something personal, but there was just a feeling of wrong here.

"H-Hello?"

A head whipped towards me and glowing red eyes stopped my heart. Oh... Oh yeah, I'm regretting coming into work today. I took a few steps back, chest heaving uneasily. I let out a whimper when I backed into something, or rather someone judging by the feel. I looked up to see a grinning man with fiery sunglasses staring down at me.

"Good evening, Red," he greeted. "I thought we might meet again."

"W-What-"

"Alucard," hissed the other, who started to stand now.

She wiped her face and I shuddered. By the light of the moon, I saw that was my boss, Ms. Juniper. The only physical difference I could tell was her eye color had changed, but there was a weird aura coming from her and it froze my blood. My eyes flickered to the person in the chair and I felt a lump form in my throat.

Jake.

I pressed up against the man, wanting nothing more than to just run away from the situation. My eyes were stinging and it was becoming harder to see.

"My reputation proceeds me," responded the tall man, still grinning a sharp-toothed grin.

"Step away from the boy and we won't have a problem," she told him rather suddenly, moving closer to us.

"And here I thought I'd actually have a challenge," Alucard sighed wistfully, bringing his gun up to aim it at Ms. Juniper. "I wouldn't go to work tomorrow," he whispered down at me, sunglasses tilting so I could see his eyes.

Before I had time to respond, he took my arm and moved me aside so he could advance, gun already shooting. I covered my ears, heart racing again as I tried to decide what to do. Finally, I decided on running out of the bullpen and towards the exit. Holy shit this was really happening. I tripped over my own feet and down I went. Thank God, too, because a bullet whizzed passed where my head would have been. I looked back in time to see my boss's face contorted and snarling, clawed hands reaching out towards me before her head was blown apart. Blood and other organic matter splattered my yet again and I scooched away from where she landed.

"Half breeds," Alucard muttered, moving closer now and putting a bullet through her chest. He looked back up at me now and grinned again, holstering his weapons. "My Master would like for you to come back with me, to have tests done."

I sat silently for a minute, eyes wide and breath shallow. Suddenly, I jumped up and burst through the door to the stairs. My foot slipped on the edge of one of the stairs and I closed my eyes shut, waiting for the impending pain, but it never came. I slowly opened my eyes to see the floor, about a foot away from my feet. Alucard lightly set me down and turned me around.

"Are you done?"

"W-What do they want with me?" I sputtered, taking a few steps backwards.

He started to lean in, but when I took another step backwards, I tripped and fell onto the stairs. The red-eyed man stared at me intently for a moment, before just grinning.

"Who knows?"


	4. Chapter 4: Thursday

Thursday

My face felt tight and sticky from the dried up blood still splattered across it. I stood uncomfortably in front of a desk in a mostly empty, though quite large, room. The floor-to-ceiling windows made for quite the view of the Hellsing estate and I could imagine wandering the ground for a good portion of the day. The door opening brought my attention back to reality and I turned to see a tall, blond haired woman marching towards the desk, a butler following suit.

The woman sat behind the desk and opened a file. While she read over whatever the contents were, the butler offered her a selection of expensive looking cigars. She chose one and he lit it for her. After taking a few puffs, she finally turned her attention to me and I could feel the intensity flowing freely from her being. I shifted uncomfortably, wanting nothing more than to be at home, in my shower, away from the world.

"Oliver Jonathon Slater. 28 years of age, Caucasian, 5 foot, 8 inches. Financial adviser to a multi-million corporation at only the age of 23. Studio apartment with only 1,500 pounds rent per month. You are quite unextraordinary, Mr. Slater, save for your IQ," she commented, fingers bridged.

I paused a moment. So my life story was in that folder? Man, this was the wrong time to realize how small it really was. I felt like maybe I should say something, but I glanced over at the butler and he lightly shook his head, so I turned my attention back to the woman.

"My name is Sir Integra Hellsing. I'm owner of this organization and estate. You seem to be appearing in a lot of incidents as of late and have lived. You're not a vampire. You don't even seem anything abnormal, so what is it? Are you controlling these new freaks?"

I opened my mouth to protest, but glanced over at the butler. He quirked an eyebrow and I sighed.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I admitted quietly. "I-I don't... I didn't even know vampires were real until tonight."

"Not surprising, but there's something that keeps drawing these freaks to you. Assuming you'd like to keep living, we have to figure out what's going on," she told me, leaning back in her chair. "There are half breeds coming out of the wood work. These creatures are supposed to be very rare, meaning most don't even make it through the vampire process due to already mutated genes. Something is allowing the process to go through unhindered."

"Wait, you're saying half breed, like... like they're already something... inhuman?"

"Indeed," Integra answered, puffing her cigar. "Take your boss, Samantha Juniper. Upon further investigation, she turned out to be part werewolf, part vampire. The man at the club, Frank Jillian, was half elf, half vampire. See the connection?"

"What about the guy that jumped me in the alley?" I asked, starting to feel queasy again.

"Half gargoyle."

I stood silently, feeling the blood rush to my head. What in the actual fuck? Vampires? Werewolves? Elves? And even... Gargoyles? Some things were simply too much to handle and I'll be the first one to admit that I fainted a lot, but this was surely enough to defend another spell. I felt my body move backwards and I just didn't have the energy to catch myself. Thankfully, someone else did. I fell back against someone and I looked up to see that grinning face again, long black hair falling over his shoulders.

"Red... we really need to stop meeting like this," he teased, one arm wrapped around my waist.

My cheeks tinted pink, more so than before, and I tried to right myself.

"No need to rush," he commented, though helped me stand a little bit straighter. "This makes me thing we shouldn't add that other piece of news, hm, Master?"

A heavy sigh came from the blond's lips and she shook her head.

"For once, you might be right. Oliver, I would like you keep you here for the time being, until we can figure out why you're being targeted," she told me, watching me closely behind round glasses.

I snapped out of the spell that was Alucard's eyes and moved away from him and her. This all felt wrong. There was too much wrong. I shook my head quietly, stepping back towards the door.

"I'm sorry, this is... this is too much," I murmured, shoulders hunched and gaze averted. "I'm sorry I-"

"I understand," Integra interrupted, sitting up now. "We are here if you change your mind."

Nodding in understanding, I quietly turned to leave.

"We can have a car take you back," Integra offered.

"Or I can take you myself," Alucard purred.

I felt his eyes boring into my body and I could have sworn he was practically stripping me bare. It took a lot not to turn around and go back to him and I had to wonder how much his being a vampire had to do with my yearning. I finally shook my head.

"A car would be nice, but I'm pretty sure I was almost sick from our last inter-dimensional venture," I commented, turning back somewhat to look at him briefly, then his Master.

She nodded and the butler escorted me outside to the front. The building was quite large and somewhat intimidating. I felt my stomach churn and my cruel mind flashed images of Jake, lying helpless in that chair. I repressed the tears that so desperately wanted to fall and I leaned against one of the railings to the large stairs leading up to the Hellsing Mansion.

"Is something the matter, Mr. Slater?" the butler inquired.

I looked over at him, berating myself for forgetting he was even there.

"N-No... well... yes... What uhm... what are you guys going to do with my friend's body?" I inquired, willing my voice not to quiver.

"He will be properly taken care of, sir," he reassured, voice surprisingly gentle. He came closer and handed my a card with a couple of numbers on it. "The first one is Integra's direct line, the second is my personal line and the third is Alucard's."

"He... has a phone?"

"He has a phone in his room," he responded, taking a step back. "Please feel free to call any time, Mr. Slater."

"Oliver, please," I offered quietly. "And thank you, so much, er..."

"Walter is fine."

I nodded. Soon the car showed up and Walter opened the door for me.

"Take care, Oliver," he told me, voice low and inviting. "And believe me when I saw, we will take care of Jake to the highest of our ability."

I watched Walter walk back up into the Hellsing mansion as the car left. Exhaustion pulled my eyes closed and I curled up in the back of the car. My best friend... He was gone, forever.


	5. Chapter 5: Friday

Friday

The answering machine beeped for probably the fifth time today and Sasha's voice resounded throughout my apartment and I curled up more on my couch.

"Ollie?" Her voice was so timid now, probably afraid of bothering me too much. "Ollie, please. I heard what happened... Please just let me know you're okay." She paused for too long and the machine cut her message off.

She'd probably try calling back again in a bit, but I finally went over and unplugged my phone. I had left my cell phone in my room after she'd tried calling that, too. I couldn't stand any more of her pity and I just wanted to mourn in peace. Work was called off for everyone today and I could only imagine why. Images of last night flashed through my head and I pulled my throw blanket over my body.

"You seem down."

I started, sitting up quickly in time to see Alucard disappear into the kitchen. I hesitated for a moment before following suit, pulling my blanket over my shoulders. This was a peculiar sight indeed: A vampire making tea in a human's kitchen.

"W-Why..."

He glanced back at me, grinning lightly, before leaning against one of the counters. "Why not? You act like a vampire can't make tea."

"Well it's not that you /can't/ make tea," I mumbled, pulling the blanket closer around my shoulders. "It's just that... why would you /bother/ making tea... for a human, no less."

He watched me a moment before simply shrugging. "My Master wanted me here, to protect you at the very least," he finally said, watching me still.

"I'd think you'd have better things to do... Plus, don't vampires sleep during the day?" I snorted, moving over to the cabinet where I kept my tea.

Even though I wasn't even looking at him, I could tell he was grinning again. A shiver went down my spine and I felt as though his presence was right behind me. I glanced over my shoulder to see he was right where I left him, still leaning against the counter opposite me. I pulled down my Linden tea.

"Do you want some, too?"

"Peppermint, if you have it."

This guy was just full of surprises, hm? I watched him pour the water, long limbs moving carefully around. He lightly dunked the tea packets and handed my mug to me, grin never disappearing. I silently accepted it and pulled the warmth to my chest. The overwhelming sadness gripped my chest again and I curved into myself. A short moment later, a long arm slipped around my shoulders and guided me back towards the couch. He sat me down and took a place on the other side of the couch. I was only somewhat aware of his presence, too bogged down in my own mind to care any more.

"You know what? After this cup of tea, I think I /will/ take a nap."

His words startled me into lifting my head somewhat, if only to get a better look at him. Was he serious? This guy...

"Do what you like," I mumbled, gingerly sipping my still steaming tea.

"And what about you? Shall you simply sit there and wallow in your own self pity?"

I slid further down into the couch and pulled my knees up to my chest. Probably, but I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that. I thought about why he was even here and it honestly just bewildered me. Part of me wanted to do some research on this Hellsing group, but with him sitting right there, it felt weird. Plus, how much could I actually dig up, since vampires and the such weren't even supposed to be known to the public as real. I felt my gaze sliding over to the vampire, speaking of. He was leaning into the couch, wide-brimmed hat pulled down over his face somewhat and his hands were clasped together in his lap. A casual position for one trying to take a nap on a couch. But there was something still bothering me.

"Why aren't they just burying Jake's body?" I asked suddenly.

He was silent for way too long and I was about to repeat myself, thinking he hadn't heard me, when I could very faintly hear a low chuckle.

"Why indeed... Because he's not dead."

"Not... what in the hell are you talking about?" I inquired, sitting up now. "I thought... Integra, she..."

"Never said he was dead. No one did. You simply assumed and honestly that's the biggest mistake you can make in this kind of world," he commented, moving his head so he could look at me and grin. "He's just in a predicament at the moment that my Master fears you wouldn't be able to handle, considering your predisposition to fainting."

I was silent for a moment, before simply standing now and heading towards my bedroom. If he wasn't going to tell me anything, there was no reason I couldn't simply ask Integra, or Walter. Right when I was about to grab my phone from the charger, a shadow fell across my bed and I was picked up by the waist.

"That's a bit extreme, hm, Red?"

My face flushed and I struggled against him. "W-What are you doing?"

"My Master is in a meeting right now... If you want to live, you'd best not interrupt her," he mumbled in my ear, bringing me back to the couch.

"D-Did you have to carry me?" I grumbled, pulling my blanket back over me once I was on the couch.

"No, but I figured it'd be easier... You can call her in an hour. Until then, why don't you finish your tea and read a book or something," he suggested, sitting down much closer than before.

I sighed and pulled my legs up to my chest again, too tired to argue at that point. Resting my head on the back of the couch, I felt my several days of unrest unraveling in my head and my heavy eyes closed. A knock at the door jolted me awake and I could feel Alucard himself tense, though only somewhat.


	6. Chapter 6: Friday PT 2

Friday Part two

Knock knock.

I tiredly looked over at the door, wondering who the hell could be at my home. My friends were limited in short supply to my work and even then, none of them seemed to care enough to contact me after the incident. Sasha had been the only one to bother.

I stood up, glancing at Alucard out of the corner of my eye. The vampire was leaning back against the couch once more, and though his hat was no longer on his face, it still obscured most of his face, at least from my perspective.

Finally pulling my attention away from the mystery that was that man, I moved to the door, about to simply open it before I remembered Alucard's and Integra's words of warning. I looked through the peephole instead and let out a soft sigh.

"What are you doing here, Sasha?" I inquired upon opening the door to reveal my friend standing there.

Instead of looking friendly and inviting, or even concerned and sad, she looked pissed. The taller woman pushed passed me and into my apartment, not missing a beat.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" she snapped, poking my chest roughly. "I thought you were my friend, Ollie."

"I am your friend, Sasha..." I responded, frowning, clearly surprised by her outbursts. "I don't understand why you're so upset."

"I've been trying to call you all freaking morning!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Calling both phones, emailing, texting! Not once did you have the fucking decency to let me know you were even still alive! Your best friend dying plus your disappearing does not equal anything good, Oliver! I can't believe you'd let me sit there worrying about you all freaking morning!"

I stood there silently for a minute. She was right... It wouldn't have been the first time I'd been to a dark place and she'd helped me through it before. I bit my lip for a moment before pulling her into a sudden hug. She stood still for a second, probably processing, before wrapping her arms around me in return, the embrace tight.

"I'm sorry, Sasha. You know I'd never intentionally worry you like that... I just wasn't thinking."

I felt her shoulders shudder somewhat and she buried her face deeper into my shoulder.

"I know," she mumbled, pulling away after a minute.

Sasha lightly wiped her eyes, trying to pretend like nothing at happened, like she wasn't tearing up at all. Finally, her gaze was drawn to the red mass on my mint green couch. She turned more fully now, eyes widening somewhat. I saw a weird glint in her eyes, almost like a glint of recognition and I furrowed my eyebrows.

"This is a new friend of mine, Alucard," I introduced after a short minute, watching Sasha carefully.

"O-Oh... good to... meet you, Alucard," she responded, clearing her throat quickly. "I uhm... I need to head out, but uh..." She ripped her gaze from Alucard and brought it back to me. "If you need anything, and I mean anything, you'll call, right?"

"Of course, Sasha," I said softly, bringing a hand up to rest on my upper arm.

I turned to say something to Alucard, but he was suddenly gone. I frowned, perturbed that I didn't see him disappear. I moved instead to see Sasha wave as she left. Everyone was just vanishing and honestly it was starting to frustrate me. Shaking it off, I went and grabbed my laptop. Fine, if everyone was going to do as they pleased, then so would I. A few pages into research on werewolves, I was startled by Alucard, who sat back down on the couch abruptly.

"Where were you?" I mumbled, not removing my eyes from my laptop screen.

"I was out of tea," he answered casually, setting his mug on the side table. He moved somewhat closer to peer at my laptop, before chuckling lowly. "How much are you really going to get out of the internet?"

"Enough... Something... All I need is something... there's a lot of talk and myths, but there's quite a few links between different tales and fables, so maybe some will hold true for Jake," I replied, pulling my hair over the shoulder furthest from Alucard. "Why, do you think you guys would know more?"

I didn't miss the short pause before he leaned back against the couch.

"No, we don't know much about werewolves. They're rare these days, or at least we don't have much of a problem with them," he responded calmly. "Our primary focus is vampires."

"Because you know vampires or because they're a bigger problem than other creatures?" I retorted, finally glancing over at him.

He grinned slyly. "Cute, but you've a point. It's probably because we know more about vampires. Maybe we should start thinking about taking on other charges."

I looked over at him fully now, surprised. "Isn't vampires hard enough as if? I'm sure werewolves would be much harder."

"And you don't think we'd be able to handle it?" he laughed, watching me like a cat watched a mouse he was having too much fun playing with.

"It's not that, I'm just saying maybe there's someone already taking care of problematic werewolves. Or maybe they aren't as troublesome as vampires," I mumbled, shifting somewhat. "Whatever, it doesn't matter. What's more important right now is Jake. Do you think she's done yet?" I inquired, looking back at him.

He shrugged. "Perhaps. I still think you should sleep... you seem like you haven't slept in quite some time."

His sincerity startled me into silence for a short moment, but I caught myself and shook my head. "That's also not important right now," I grumbled, standing up and heading for my phone once more.

"Red..."

"Oliver. My name is Oliver," I corrected.

"My Master is not a woman to be trifled with..."

I glanced back at him, growing ever more frustrated with the man in red. Why was he so insistent that I didn't call her? Maybe she really was doing something important. In any case, I'd simply visit Hellsing tomorrow. I set my phone back down, suddenly feeling my exhaustion. This was all too much. The entire week has been nothing but hell. I pulled back my blankets and crumpled onto the bed, not even bothering to pull the blanket up.


	7. Chapter 7: Saturday

Chapter Seven: Saturday

My body lurched forward of its own volition, my stomach berating me angrily about how dumb I was to accept Alucard's invitation. I glanced over at him, calm as ever, hand on my arm to keep me steady. Of course he'd be fine for interdimentional travel, but I was starting to seriously have doubts about how safe it was for my all too human body. Finally, I righted myself and blinked to see the same young blond woman from the club. She smiled happily at me, hands linked together behind her back.

"Hiya! You must be Oliver!" she greeted excitedly. "I'm Seras Victoria," she added, offering a gloved hand.

I quietly shook it, caught off guard by her blue eyes. Was she one of them or not? "N-Nice to meet you," I finally responded, clearing my throat.

"Seras is a draculina," Alucard informed me, seeing the confusion clear on my face. "My only sired."

"Ah, okay... Uhm... hi," I mumbled again, offering a small smile.

"By the way, love your hair," she added quickly as Alucard started walking towards a large mahogany dresser. "Is it natural?"

I paused a moment before laughing. "Uh, yeah, actually... My mom had the same hair," I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck. "Uhm, well, I was wondering if or uh when we could-"

"You need to eat," Alucard interrupted, silently closing the last drawer. "When was the last time you ate?"

I glanced over at Seras, who cocked her head to the side, probably wondering the same thing. I shifted uncomfortably. It was true, I was hungry, but the thought of Jake weighed heavily on my mind and I needed to see him. Suddenly, and overwhelming rush of nausea and anxiety struck my hard and I found myself sitting on a nearby chair, though I could have sworn the chair was further away before.

"O-Oliver?" Seras called out worriedly, moving closer to rub my back.

I was bent forward, holding my stomach. The sensation of suffocation passed and I slowly sat up, carefully opening my eyes to see Alucard knelt down in front of me, watching me with a surprisingly soft expression. It caught me off gaurd ad I hesitated before he suddenly stood and offered a gloved hand.

"You're eating."

"A-Alu-"

"Don't fight me on this," he ordered. "You're no use to anyone, least of all Jake, passing out or dead."

It wasn't too long later that I was sitting at a long table. Alucard was at the head, I was on his right and Seras was on his left. The silence was heavy and thick and all I could think about was the fact that somewhere in this massive building was my best friend, possibly in a lot of pain and suffering. I stared silently down at my soup, but then had to turned my head, the smell upsetting my stomach more.

"Oliver? You look a little flush," Seras pointed out softly.

I glanced over at her, eyes flickering down to her own bowl with a small residual ring of blood near the top. Alucard was leaning back in his chair, fingers linked on his stomach. His head was facing away, but his eyes were fixated on me.

"I'm uh... I'm okay, but I'm just... I'm nauseous," I mumbled softly, shaking my head. "I can't eat while Jake is somewhere around here... possibly in pain, probably scared out of his mind... I can't sit here while he's.."

"I get it," Seras responded, reaching across the table and placing her hand on mine. "If we bring you to see him, will you please eat something after?"

Taking a deep breath and a moment, I slowly nodded. "Yeah..."

"This place is a maze, how do you find your way so easily?" I asked, glancing over at the blond walking next to me.

Alucard was in front of us, long legs striding easily through the halls as if gravity had no affect on him at all. Any soldier we passed made room, or even stopped to let us pass by. Even the paintings themselves seemed to bow to his very presence and I wondered what he'd done to make the very essence of this house bend to his will.

"You'll get used to it eventually. I still get lost sometimes," Seras whispered, offering a playful smile.

I returned the gesture with a strained mimic and simply focused my gaze on Alucard's back, unsure of where else to look, plus it was almost comforting to look at. The walk was long and also too much to bear; I thought I'd go crazy from the waiting, but then Alucard suddenly stopped and I almost bumped into him.

"We're here," he stated, glancing back at me, a small grin overtaking his lips.

"O-Okay... what uhm... is he..."

"He's alive, aware and very agitated," he answered, looking back at the iron cast door with strange engravings laced throughout. The vague memory of my research came pouring back and so did the talks of silver's affects on werewolves.

"Is he uh... is he all werewolf or-"

"Yes. Although she was half, the same principle applies for turning someone. She did not drain his blood, therefore he wasn't turned into a ghoul or into a vampire," Alucard said, turning to face me more. "Are you ready?"

My gaze dropped down to my hands, which I just realized here shaking. I balled them, gripping them into tight fists, trying to stop the shaking, the tremors. Gloved hands found their way to mine and and I looked up to see Seras' big blue eyes staring gently into my own.

"He's your friend, yeah? You love him, yeah? Then you'll be strong for him. You /are/ strong enough for him," she said softly. "You got this."

When she removed herself, I looked down at my hands once again and they were finally still, so I met Alucard's gaze and I nodded, so he opened the large door with no resistance. The sound of scraping rang clear up the stairs, from the darkness. Deep, gutteral growls echoed in the no doubt vast area and the clinking of chains chilled my bones and I hesitated. It sounded like a large dog was down there, in the darkness, but then I remembered there really was a large dog down there in the darkness. My best friend was now one of the things that go bump in the night and it froze my body to the very core. Was I strong enough? Was I really strong enough to see him like this? Broken and battered? A deep breath in. A deep breath out. I started down the steep stairs, hand lightly trailing on the wall.

"J-Jake?" I called out, stopping at the foot of the stairs.

A presence behind me told me Alucard had followed down the stairs.

"He's in a cage," he told me slowly, face awfully close to my own.

Lights suddenly turned on, though for only half of the large room. Something slunk back into the darkness of an expansive cage, wrapped in silver chains. I glanced back at Alucard, who gestured casually towards the cage, only moving towards the cage when I did.

"Jake...?" I called out, somewhat more sure. "Jake, it's me, Ollie. Your friend?"

I stood a few inches from the cage, unsure about how close I could get. Suddenly, a foot came out of the shadows. It was tanned and had chipped black nail polish on the nails, which looked more like talons right then. He was still wearing his jeans from work, splattered and doused with blood. A chiseled belly came into the light, movements unsure and confused.

"Jake..."

The man in the cage stopped completely before he could fully come out of the darkness.

"Jake, please come out? I just want to see if you're okay," I said softly.

Finally, the body continued. Familiar black hair came into view draped over his shoulders and my heart broke to see the large, biting gouge wound that had already scarred over on his neck, extending to his left shoulder and chest. His eyes were different too, rough, tired and red. He looked at me strangely, eyes wide. He moved a few more steps towards me and I returned the gesture, placing a hand on the bars in the hopes he would come to me. Without warning, arms wrapped around my waist and yanked me backwards just as Jake lunched at the bars, long arms reaching through, claws just barely scraping my skin. Alucard and I tumbled backwards, landing on the much taller man hard, though he didn't seem to care.

"He won't be himself every again," Alucard murmured in my ear. "You will have to accept that soon or you'll never be okay."


	8. Chapter 8: Sunday

Chapter Eight: Sunday

"And where were you yesterday?"

The daring look in sharp blue eyes kept me silent, though I glanced over at the tall, black haired man standing next to me, a playful grin on his face. Apparently Integra had come back from her meeting not long after we went down into the basement, where my best friend was now some strange creature who might never recognize me again.

"With him," he answered casually, looking over the top of his sunglasses at the blond.

She squinted behind round glasses at him, calculating something with a flicker of annoyance bouncing around her head. She didn't seem to like that answer and honestly I couldn't figured out why. Wasn't it she who ordered him to stay with me while I was at my home? I glanced over at him yet again, hoping I hadn't gotten him in trouble over something small. But there he was, still grinning at her like he had some little secret he wasn't about to share with her. Finally, Integra turned her attention to me and I straight somewhat.

"Mr. Slater. There are some things we need to discuss about your friend, Mr. Clayton, who I am told you've already met with today," she started, fingers bridged on the desk she was sitting behind. "Walter and I have come up with a plan. It is a simple plan with one point: If Mr. Clayton doesn't recognize you by the end of this week he will die."

I swallowed hard, my stomach twisting in a way that almost made me puke. I felt all eyes on my and I all I could do was drop mine to the ground. Kill him? Just like that? My hands were shaking again, both tightly clenching the other. I closed my eyes, tightly, trying to think about anything other than that.

"You can't will this away, Mr. Slater. I have no use for a deranged werewolf," Integra said coursly. "Also, we will need to run some tests on you. There is a reason you're being targeted," she sighed. "Blood and DNA tests are all we will need for now."

"For now? What else are you planning on taking?" I asked incredulously, eyes brimming with tears; not for me, but for Jake. "What else could you possibly take from me?"

"I am not taking anything," she barked. "I am giving you a chance to save your friend and a chance to figure out why everything is trying to kill you. Do not tell me I am taking anything. Get out of my sight."

I briskly turned and left, Alucard on my tail. I didn't stop until we arrived to my temporary room and I slumped against the wall, leaning foward to put my hands on my knees. Integra was a tough person to deal with, clearly, but this wasn't a subject she could brutishly shove through. I barely noticed Alucard sitting on my bead, elbows resting on his knees and his arms limp between his legs. He watched me silently for a few moments.

"Red."

"W-What?" I mumbled, head hanging low.

"Come here."

I slowly looked up at him, too tired to move. I couldn't read him and I couldn't see his eyes so there was no way of telling what he was thinking. Finally, I pushed my self off the wall and sat on the bed beside him.

"I told you my master was not a woman to be trifled with."

"Yeah, I know..." I grumbled. "Thanks for that 'I-told-you-so', by the way," I sighed, flopping backwards onto the bed. "What do I do?"

He grinned down at me from over red and orange sunglasses. "Fix your friend."

I glanced up at him tiredly. What was he up to? What was his real agenda? Maybe for once someone trying to help me didn't have one and maybe that was alright, but not likely. I closed my eyes, willing the room to disappear for a while.

"But, first, you promised to eat."

I opened my eyes again and my heart skipped a beat. Dark red eyes were hovering right above my own, nose teasingly close and lips, oh his lips were right there.

"W-What are you doing," I mumbled, afraid that if I moved my lips too much they'd meet with his own.

"Trying to figure out why you're sleeping in such a weird position. Anyways." A long arm snaked under me, at the small of my back and he forced me to sit up again. "Food. Now."

"Fine, fine, fine, I just-s-stop," I sputtered, scrambling off the bed and moving far away from him. "Just... don't," I mumbled, hunching my shoulders. A knock on the door graced the awkward silence that followed and I quickly moved to open it. "Seras. Thank god. Let's go eat," I suggested, grabbing her hand and hurrying away from the tall man now removing himself from the bed.

"Do you have to do this right now?" Seras asked the small group of doctors standing ready with blood-withdrawing tools.

I looked down at my mostly finished meal and quietly wiped my mouth. "No, it's allright, Seras. I'm done anyways. Thank you for the company."

"Oh, uh, okay..." she responded, standing now. "Well, I should get some sleep. If you need anything, don't hesitate to find me," Seras told me, patting my back for slipping away.

The blood drawing didn't take too long and all I could think about was Jake. Was anyone feeding him? After the doctors left, I went into the kitchen, hoping for something to bring him. There were quite a few cooks in the room and they all stopped to acknowledge my presence. I wondered if Integra had anything to do with it, but when I asked for something for Jake, they made something fairly quickly. I thanked the group and went back downstairs, only knowing where I was going based on paintings we'd passed before. A few times I'd lost my way, realizing I had stared at the vampire's back a lot of the way, but eventually I found the iron and silver door.

"Jake?"

At the bottom, in front of the cage, I stood, listening to the harsh clinking of chains, plate of food in hand.

"Jake, I brought food," I said quietly. I noted a small door towards the bottom of the massive cage and carefully slid the food in.

A few moments of silence and the clinking of chains returned with Jake himself being produced from the shadows. He silently slunk over, unsure of what to do when he saw me. Confusion was clear on his face as he carefully moved to the food. Jake started to pick up the chicken with his hands and eat, but then he saw the fork. I could see the the gears turning and he set the meat back down on the plate and tore it apart that way. I smiled a little, happy he wasn't completely gone.

I watched him quiet while he ate, sitting in front of the cage, about a foot away. I wasn't sure what to say to him. When he was done, he sat and watched me in turn, legs criss-crossed. He moved closer, scooting across the floor. Suddenly, I noticed the lines under his eyes and I frowned deeply.

"You'll get better, Jake. You have to," I sighed.

"You look like you're working hard."

I jumped, toppling a small pile of books. I quickly piled them back up and stood, meeting blue eyes wth glasses. It took a lot not to sit back down, waiting silently for her to do or say something. When I saw she wasn't budging, I let out a quiet sigh.

"You'll excuse me if I'm none too please to see you right now," I finally said.

"Oh I'm used to it," she chuckled, moving closer and looking at the books I was reading. "Here."

The tall woman set an old book whose cover was practically falling apart. She watched me carefully, gauging my reaction.

"It was my grandfathers. The only book this mansion has about werewolves," she admitted. "You'll not find anything else in this room, but you can try," she said, seeing me glance over at the book tiredly. "That's not the only reason I came, however. I'm inviting you to lunch."

I looked at her fully now and paused, unsure of her reasoning.

"I'm... not really hungry," I told her quietly.

"Okay, well, it's been several hours since you've last eaten and I do believe you had blood drawn. You're run yourself ragged at this rate," she pointed out. "But, suit yourself."

I watched her start to leave, surprised at how caring she actually seemed. It was quite back and forth with her sometimes, but maybe she really did have a more human side. I returned my gaze to the old book on the table and picked myself up from the chair.

"Ah, wait a moment and I'll join you."

I quietly picked at my food, mind racing with everything that had been happening over the passed week. Sleep seemed to escape my grasp for about three nights now and perhaps Integra was right: I was running ragged.

"Walter's food isn't /that/ bad."

I refocused my gaze on her, a little startled. "I... what?"

"You're not eating still."

"Oh, uhm... sorry, I just... it's a lot, I suppose," I sighed, pushing my hair back over my shoulders. "A lot and all of a sudden," I laughed.

"I understand..." she admitted softly. "It's a big world hidden in the darkness and not everyone is equipped to cope with it. You... seem very close to Mr. Clayton," Integra mentioned, calmly cutting through her chicken.

"You can call him Jake, if you want," I told her, mindlessly stirring my soup. "And yeah, we've been friends for a while, since highschool," I recalled, smilingly fondly. "He's been my knight in shining armor since the first time he saved me from a couple of bullies who'd shoved me in a locker."

"A locker? You're thin, but... a locker?"

"I was actually pretty short my freshman year," I chuckled. "I guess short and thin and trans makes for an easy target," I shrugged, looking back down at the soup.

Integra was silently watching me for a moment or so before having Walter light a cigar. "That does sound like it could have been terrible for you, but at least you have Jake now," she commented. Her attention was drawn to some movement out of the corner of her eye and she saw one of the doctors waiting paitently at the door. She beckoned him over and they talked for a quick moment as she looked over some papers. The blond woman waved for the doctor to leave before setting the papers down on the table, leaning back in her chair. "As far as I or the doctors can tell, you've nothing medically special about your blood. You're O- and slightly anemic which may explain why you keep passing out, but other than that you're normal," she sighed, taking a puff of her cigar.

I wasn't sure where to be hapy or upset and I had the feeling she wasn't sure how to feel either. A definite answer would have made this easier, but we would just have to deal with it as is.

"These creatures want something from you that they can all withstand to ingest, which is quite rare considering how many different half breeds there were." She foxed her gaze on me, though was clearly lost in thought.

When too many moments passed, I quietly stood.

"If it's all right, I would like to see Jake and grab him some food," I told her quietly.

"Of course. Walter, bring him something for Jake. Has there been any progress?" she inquired, quirking an eyebrow.

"Yeah, actually. He ate his last meal with a fork," I informed her. How sad is it that I was excited about such a simple thing.

"I see. Well, I wish you luck. I don't wish to be the bad guy in this scenario, but you understand why it has to be done," she commented, standing and casually walking in the other direction, Walter following suit.

There was a moment I forgot the postion Jake was in and I was sitting against the cage, back pressing against it. I didn't notice the munching sounds had stopped and I didn't notice the subtle clanking of chains right behind me. What I /did/ notice was slender, clawed hands out of the corner of my eye, coming out of the cell. I didn't have enough time to move out of the way as his hand was coming towards me at a rapid pace, but then it suddenly slowed. I paused, heart racing. Finally, the hand cupped my face and turned me towards the owner so I was facing the cage. His thumb softly rubbing my cheek and I met soft purple eyes.

A sudden clanging of the door opening startled both he and I and he quickly pulled his hand away, accidentally scratching me in the process. I pulled back, covering the wound with my hand, feeling blood pouring through my fingers. Long arms found themselves around my body and Alucard pulled me away from the cage.

"Looking for some excitement in the middle of the day?" he growled, arms wrapped protectively around me.


	9. Chapter 9: Monday

Alucard leaned against the wall with the door attached to it, watching the nurse closely enough to make her nervous. Her hands shook as she put a couple simple stitches in the scratch I'd received from Jake not half an hour ago I could tell Alucard was fuming about what had happened, thought it was hard to say why, exactly. I was quickly becoming tired of his prescence.

"Alucard, I'm fine. I don't need you hanging out," I grumbled, trying not to move my mouth too much because of the pain.

"An who will make sure you don't do something stupid again," he growled, arms crossed over his chest.

"I had the situation under control," I sighed, wincing when the nurse put the bandage on my face, careful not to stick medical tape in my hair. "How long do you think it'll take to heal?" I asked her.

"N-Not too long. I'll come back later to change your bendage," she stuttered, giving a quick bow before gathering the medical supplies and trash and scurrying out of the rom.

"I told you not to go too close to the cage, Red. You're human and its far too dangerous."

I looked over at him tiredly, brain too fried to figure out why he was acting so weird. Alucard didn't seem to care too much before, so his irritation was baffling to me now. Something about his mood made me want to stop the arguement, but then again, it also made me want to fight on. Perhaps it was the exhaustion, but my common sense was seeping out, leaving me behind and I wanted to prod the bull.

"Remind me again why I have to listen to you?" I grumbled, pulling my legs up to cross on the bed.

Red eyes flashed with something I couldn't identify, but it made my spine crawl with uncertainty. I may have made a bad choice, though there was no turning back now.

"My master has tasked me with keeping your safety," he responded evenly, eyes glowing, "but if you'd like to throw your life into the hands of some useless mongrel-"

"He's my friend!" I snapped, sitting up straighter. "Not some monster incapable of empathy or reason. He /will/ recognise me soon enough and then there won't be any danger at all."

"And yet he still harmed you," the vampire snorted, pulling his upper lip back in a sneer, flashing his canines in an obvious show of power. "There will always be danger where monsters are concerned."

I caught my tongue before I responded too hastily, an insult very nearly endangering my life. I closed my eyes a moment and grabbed my brush from the nightstand; this was a sure way to calm my mind.

As I started methodically brushing my hair, I responded with, "You startled us both."

"And look at what he did to you in turn. If he's this dangerous when startled, then he really can't be trusted."

White knuckles were glaringly obvious as I gripped my brush, practically ripping it through my hair. Where the hell did this guy get off acting like such a jerk?! Last I checked, he was lord Dracula himself, capable of probably much more damage than Jake upon being startled an yet he acted like he was the most harmless thing in the world.

"That's pretty funny, coming from someone who wanted, who /pressed/ me to spend more time with him."

That seemed to be the last straw for the vampire. He stood up straight, pushing his sunglasses on.

"It's too early in the goddamn morning," he growled. "Stay here until I return."

With that, he left my room and I threw my brush on the bed.

"You made a ruckus in my home."

I turned my head away from my journal. I had turned to it in this time of deep frustration in the vain hopes it would help sort my thoughts. I had a chance to calm down at least a little and sat up, putting book and utensil down.

"Sorry," I sighed lightly. "It's been... difficult today, but thats no excuse."

Integra was quiet a moment before moving over to the chair at the small table. She casually lit a cigar and took a long drag.

"Alucard can be... difficult," she finally stated, cutting the silence.

It took a lot of will power not to snort at her blatant comment.

"You're his uh... master, right?" I inquired, sitting up to cross his legs. "You'd think he wouldn't be so annoying towards you."

My statement drove an interesting chuckle from Integra. I had a feeling the two had been working together for quite some time and she was used to his games.

"Yes... He has his moments, as brief and far between as they are. How is your friend, Jake?"

The sudden change in subject caught me offguard, welling up feelings I hadn't had time to process by myself yet. How was he? How was I even supposed to answer that? How was I supposed to know? I dropped my gaze, taking my time in figuring out an answer.

"Better."

"Oh?"

"I know; the face... it looks bad, but it doesn't hurt, really," I sputtered, looking up at her once more. "Alucard startled the both of us-"

"Yes, so I've heard quite a bit about it," she interrupted, looking at me pointedly. "He was holding your face... much like a loved one would carress."

"Exactly! We- wait.. I... no, no, uh no, I uhm." The sputtering only worsened so finally I just shut up.

Another, lighter chuckle came from the Englishwoman.

"This might work to our advantage."

I snapped my head up at her in confusion, but she was already leaving the room.

I stoof with uncertainty at the top of Jake's stairs, staring down into the pitch blackness.

"Jake?"

A soft rattle of chains told me he was indeed awake. I reached over and flicked the nearby light switch before descending. The taller man was sitting with his legs crossed, towards the near edge of the cage, watching me with intense, focuse eyes. I smiled gently at him and sat near the cage.

"Oliver?"

The both of us looked up at the entrance, startled. This was happening too much for any heart to remain healthy. Seras was the intruder this time and she came down quietly.

"You sure it's a good idea; being down here and all?" she asked, plopping down next to me.

"I trust him with my life, Seras," I admitted softly.

She smiled fondly at that, not taking her eyes off Jake. "How'd you two meet, anyway?"

"Highschool," I laughed, thinking back and finding the memory all too quickly. "I was uh... picked on a lot as a kid and that of course travelled into my freshman year of highschool. Jake here had just transferred in from the States, New York, I think and it was carely a week into the school year when my old childhood bully started his crap.

"Big ol' Larry Southerson... It was hard to be mad at him once I found out about his family life. Abusive mom, absent dad... He had it rough, but that doesn't really completely excuse his actions. Anyways, first week in and I'm in a locker-"

"A locker?" Seras repeated, incredulous. "You're so tall-"

"Not as tall as I seem." I laughed. "Just uh... skinny. Jake, he saved me. Apparently, he'd seen Larry pull some other stunt on anoher kid earlier that day. They fought, I mean literally, physically fought. Larry ran off, having never had someone other than teachers stand up to him."

I found myself recalling the very moment Jake pulled me out of the locker and checked me over so carefully for any bruising or any other injuries. His ringed fingers were gnetle, as were eyes line heavily in black. If I knew then how much he was going to impact my life, I might've kissed him right then and there.

"Anyways, Jake spent all his time with me from then until, well, now," I mumbled, looking at him fondly.

"That's really sweet... Well, save for the bullying, but I'm glad you two are friends now," Seras said, smiling.

"U... tah..."

The word startled both of us and all our attention was on the werewolf, who was holding a light smirk on his face.

"I'm from... Utah."

His voice was hoarse and gravelly, but it brought tears of relief to my eyes.

"R-right," I sputtered. "Utah... how-"

"I'm feeling... better," he sighed, leaning his weight back on his hands. "It's like everything went blank for a little while... except your face. I couldn't remember who you were, just that, well... anyways... A cage, really?"


	10. Chapter 10: Monday PT 2

Chapter ten: Monday pt 2

Jake stood in front of Integra's desk, hands rucked casually in his suit pants pockets. His deep purple hair was pulled back in a low, loose ponytail and he'd already applied some dark makeup. Ever the same fashion. Integra was sitting at her desk, signing something, then handed the packet of papers to Walter.

"Mr. Clayton."

Jake stood a little straighter while I couldn't help but slump further in my chair. I was happy that Jake was better and uncaged, but now Integra was even more unpredictable about Jake's situation. Integra never seemed to like the idea of Jake being here in the first place, but I didn't expect her to kick him out on the street, being an untrained werewolf and all.

"How would you like a job?"

That caught me off guard. A job? Why in the hell would Integra offer a job? Suppose it's better than killing him, which I was grateful for. Jake had a moment of confusion as well, before offering a smile.

"I'd like that very much, sir, considering I think my old job is gone," he responded, shifting his weight onto his other leg.

"I don't think you understand the situation," Integra said. "You have no choice, no leniency in your options. Mr. Clayton, you will never have a life outside my manor. You will never live a normal life and you will strictly follow my rules or face the penalty of death," she stated calmly, fingers intertwined on her desk.

"You're quite the heavy hitter, sir, but I think I'm more than up for the challenge," Jake responded, grinning a little more.

Integra watched him carefully, as if debating if he really knew what was at stake. Jake glanced over at me, eyes almost twinkling. I knew the way he could push buttons with authority figures and I was terrified he'd push the wrong one with Integra.

"Fine. Seras and a few of my men will train you. I hope you're 'up for' several long days and nights," Integra told him.

Not a moment later and Seras entered the office, offering Jake and I a small wave.

"Train him well, Seras," Integra ordered.

Jake gave Seras he own wave in return, then bowed lowly towards Integra.

"I hope not to disappoint you, sir," he said calmly.

Jake took a moment to say something to me, but I shook my head, wanting to talk to him in private later. My friend settled with a light pat on my shoulder before heading out with Seras. Integra leaned back in her tall chair, letting out a long breath.

"Your friend better be ready," she grumbled.

"Thank you for hiring-"

"Don't go thanking me yet," she interrupted, leaning forward once more. "I have more tests for you to do. Nothing quite as fun as blood drawing, unfortunately," Integra told me. "Stay in your room and the doctors will come to you."

"I... all right. Thank you, anyways," I responded softly, leaving once she gave me the okay.

"How's it going, Ollie?"

I looked up to see Jake standing in my door way, holding two trays of food. I smiled lightly up at him and put my journal on the nightstand.

"You look like you could use a bite to eat," he murmured, waiting for me to slowly make my way to the small table in the corner before handing me a tray with veggie soup. These tests were already wearing me out.

"My favorite," I sighed happily, biting off a small piece of bread.

"I know it," he chuckled, rolling up his sleeves to reveal tanned arms. "You never answered my question, though. I heard you've been doing tests all day," he pointed out, sitting next to me with his own tray.

"Yeah... I guess there's something wrong with me... For some reason, vampire hybrids keep attacking me so she's checking to see if it's biological or something," I murmured, stirring my soup mindlessly.

Jake was quiet for a moment. "You sure it's safe to be here then? With two full blooded vampires not two feet away?" he asked, taking a bite of his salad.

I looke over at him. "You think Alucard and Seras are likely to attack me?" I snorted. "If they wanted to, don't you think they would have by now?"

"Sure, but... I don't know, just be careful," he mumbled, rubbing my back.

"What about you, hows the training going?" I inquired, nibbling on my bread some more.

"Man, I thought the training at the office was tough," he laughed, removing his hand from my back and sipping his water.

"Not funny, Jake. You need to take this seriouly. Integra is not someone to play with," I chided, throwing him a playful glare.

"Yeah, yeah, I gathered that," he mumbled, shaking his head, "but I'm learning."

"Oh, hey, where's your room now, anyways? I doubt she'd let you just return to your appartment," I snorted.

"Nah, she's got me in the same room, cage and everything," Jake laughed. "Decent enough to put a bed in, though. So you gunna let me braid your hair or what?"

I blinked at him silently for a minute or two. Was he serious? He hadn't braided my hair since college and it made me wonder where the request came from. I suddenly thought of Integra's words and shifted somewhat. Too many very unlikely scenarios were popping in my head and it took a hell of a lot of effort to shove them back down. Jake was my friend, there's no way he'd think of me like... like that... would he?

"W-why do you ask?" I stuttered quietly, mindlessly pulling some hair over my shoulder to play with.

"I figured just in case you have more tests to do, ya wouldn't mind having your hair out of your face if you get nauseous. An added bonus: It'll look beautiful," Jake added, giving a thumbs up.

I looked him over quietly, pondering the consequences, before finally giving in. I answered him by turning my chair around and scooting it closer. Long fingers pulled my hair back over ym shoulders to rest on my back. I couldn't help but notice goosebumps covering my body as he started brushing through my hair. Even though it'd been years since he'd played with it, the feeling was so familiar and it brought back nice memories of college. I rested back against the chair, relishing the calm.

"So what happens if they never find out why you're being attacked?" Jake inquired. "I don't think they can keep /you/ here against your will."

"I'm not sure how I would feel about leaving you, even if they did let me leave. But maybe... I don't know. Hey, have you seen Alucard at all?"

"Oh, big tall guy, black hair? Yeah, a real peach. Ran me ragged all morning," Jake snorted. "Why?"

"He, well... we... I don't know," I sighed. "We had a little fight, or I dunno, it was back though and I just feel bad for snapping, but I have some questions for him," I rambled, wringing my wrists nervously.

I didn't notice Jake had stopped moving until he started up again.

"Do you care about his feelings or something?" he grumbled, fingers moving swiftly.

"I mean... yeah, he can be a bit brutish, but he's saved my life several times n the last week alone and he's been doing his best to reassure me about your situation, and he doesn't even like werewolves," I answered quietly, shifting in my seat.

"Are you serious? The same ass i met this morning has been by your bedside, wiping your tears away?" he snorted.

"You sound pretty nasty about someone only trying to help," I sighed. "Listen, I just... just got you back and want to enjoy the moment."

It was tensely silent now between us and I felt bad, but still couldn't quite figure out what Jake had against Alucard. These two had been acting so strangely lately and it was so tiring.

"There," jake murmured, lightly flicking my finished braid over my shoulder.

I paused upon seeing the bow tie neatly around the base. It was black with red highlights.

"Where'd you get that?" I inquired quietly.

"Walter," he answered with a small sigh. "Seras is probably looking for me by now," he continued, standing up and taking his tray. "Finish your food and I'll be back tonight."

4 in the morning and I was bent over the toilet, my stomach whole heartedly disagreeing with the day's events. I was surprised I even made it to the bathroom at all after all the painful tests I went through: spinal tap, bone marrow. Hell, they even took a small piece of muscle from my calf. Everything ached and nothing stayed in my stomach for more than a minute or two. I leaned back against the tub, holding my head in my hands. At least Jake was right: my hair was clean and still looked nice.

"Long day?"

I couldn't even bring myself to look up at this point, but I knew who was in the doorway.

"You could say," I mumbled.

The vampire made his way over and sat on the tub side, near me. A soft clink told me he put something near me, so I dared a peak.

"First tea, now Pepto? What kind of vampire are you?" I asked light heartedly, accepting the small glass and downing the contents.

"The kind who believes in medicine. I have a human master who comes down with illness. Granted, not very often, but it does happen," he chuckled, taking his sunglasses off and tucking them in an inner coat pocket. "I heard they were cutting you raw today."

"Y-Yeah..." I mumbled, leaning against the tub once more. "And I heard you ran Jake ragged."

"Not for long... He did come with us on a hunt today, though."

That news surprised me. Why hadn't anyone told me Jake would be out so soon after gaining back his memories? A twinge of worry ran through my chest, but it quickly dropped into ym belly and I was over the toilet again. Thankfully, nothing came out, but that didn't make me feel any better. I stayed where I was for a moment before leaning back against the tub again.

"Such a fragile body..."

I laughed a little, though it was winded.

"Were you ever human?" I murmured quietly.

Alucard remained silent for a second or two, but then stood, taking the cup with him. After rinsing it out in the sink, he filled it with water and sat back in his spot, handing me the water. I accepted it and took a sip.

"A long time ago. I don't particularly miss it," he finally responed.

"Mhmm," I hummed, drinking some more water.

"These tests... they don't seem to be doing you any good," he commented. "If it helps, I don't think you're problem is the biological you're thinking of," Alucard added.

"What could it possibly be, then?" I mumbled, wondering if all these tests were for nothing.

"Genetics, lineage. Who were your parents?"

"No idea. I was adopted with I was little," I admitted with a light shrug.

I looked up at him to be met with an intense, thoughtful stare. I hadn't been this close to him in a long time and I caught my breath. Alucard leaned forward slowly and reached up. I wanted to pull away, but couldn't. I winced when the vampire pulled away the bandage covering Jake's scratch. Furrowing my eyebrows in confusion, I started to stay something, but didn't get the chance before he snipped a stitch with a sharp nail.

"Alucard, what-"

"Don't worry. I have some more self control than you think."


	11. Chapter 11: Tuesday

Chapter 11:

Integra looked more tired than I'd seen in a long while. She was clearly working over everything in her head while simultaneously glaring at Alucard with a fair amount of hate. Meanwhile, Jake was standing between Alucard and myself protectively, arms crossed over his chest, a vein pulsing. Apparently, the only people who weren't pissed was myself and Alucard, who I glanced at apologetically. The vampire apparently saw me and only offered a wink. Although he'd received a vicious jostling from Jake, not an hour before, there was no sign of bruising or injury at all.

"Of all the things we've witnessed, I am still having problems believe you, Alucard," Integra finally spoke up, glancing between me and Alucard.

"Aren't you Catholic, Master?" Alucard inquired, quirking an eyebrow. "Of everything we've seen, this should be the one thing you believe."

"I... suppose," she mumbled.

I shifted a little uncomfortable. The look of annoyance Integra shot at me made me squirm with unease. She was acting like I had any knowledge on the matter; as if I would have let her perform those tests if I knew. I couldn't help but glance back at Jake, then Alucard. These two were making my life hellish.

"And he's expected to be attacked again, no matter what? So why hasn't he been attacked until now?" she growled after Alucard nodded to the initial question

"Could be any reason," he responded. "I think whoever is making these half breeds is gunning for him, most likely because of his blood."

"We tested his blood," she snapped. "There don't seem to be any special properties."

The vampire chuckled. "Mere human tests have no way of indicating his powers. If you had let me do what I wanted to begin with, we would have known sooner."

"Does this mean Ollie didn't have to do any of those painful tests?" Jake snapped. "Not that the alternative was better," he added in a low growl, shooting a glare at Alucard.

"You: shut up," Integra snapped. "And you," she turned on Alucard, "stop back mouth. How many angels have you seen personally?"

"Full-blooded? None," Alucard responded. "I heard word on the street they'd mostly died off."

"Angels can die?" Jake snorted, though quickly went quiet when he saw Integra's face.

"Yes, as a matter of fact," Alucard retorted, not bothering so much as a glance towards my friend. "I've met one other half-angel in my time."

"What happened to them?" Integra inquiredly tiredly.

"I'm not sure," he added, grinning.

That didn't seem to help the blonde's mood at all as she leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes for a minute. She looked to be deep in thought and I shifted uncomfortably once more, wanting to say something but a little too nervous to do so. I knew Jake was staring at me, but that only made me more unsettled. I glanced over and repressed a low grumble upon seeing Alucard was staring at me, too. I had the urge to simply walk out of the room, out of the manor, but I doubted if Integra would be so nice about it.

"Does he have abilities?"

There was only a moment of reprieve when the two glanced at Integra, however, soon returned their gazes to me.

"From what I know, he will, if he practices. Lowkey, he already has advanced healing and brain activity," Alucard explained. "If he trained properly, I imagine he'd have super speed, strength, even the half-angel I'd met could heal other people."

Now it was my turn to stare at the vampire. Healing other people? That seemed a little far-fetched even for this strange world and I was tired of this day already.

"I see," Integra murmured. "Do you know how to train someone for something like that?"

"W-wait," I sputtered. "This isn't even- I don't... I'm not sure I even want this," I murmured, wringing my shirt.

The blonde stared at me intensely, almost surprised at the audacity I had, the audacity I wished I didn't have.

"You don't have a choice," she growled.

"I'm..." I glanced over at the other two. "I've done anything even close to illegal," I sputtered. "I..."

"What, you gunna send Alucard to hunt him if he refuses?" Jake asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Walter."

"Sir, could you come with me?" Walter inquired, moving from Integra's side to Jake, gesturing towards the door.

Jake looked at Integra incredulously, before accepting the inevitable and following Walter out, offering me an apologetic look. I lightly hugged myself and let out a deep sigh. Still feeling sick from yesterday, I just wanted to return home.

"There are... some details that need to be planned out," Integra finally said. "In the meantime, return to your room."

Without waiting for her to even finish the sentence, I turned and left the room as well. I needed more than a moment along, but I didn't think that would happen. Five minutes into navigating the extensive halls, I stopped suddenly in the middle of an intersection. Normally I could find my way back from Integra's office, the dining hall and Jake's room by following the paintings, but now I was in an area only vaguely familiar to me. I could my heart slowing down and with the adrenaline dissipating, my head was becoming light. Why was this area only somewhat familiar? Had I been lost here before? How was anyone supposed to think when this manor was so damn hot?

"Red..."

I jumped, turning around to see Alucard standing casually in the middle of the hall. There weren't very many moments I'd seen Alucard without a grin or a sneer on his face, but now here he was with a look on his face that I couldn't quite identify but made me uncomfortable nonetheless. It was like he was trying to tell me something without having the words. Suddenly I remembered why I knew this place: it was where I first got lost and Alucard rescued me. An overwhelming surge of emotion welled up against from nowhere and I abruptly turned, starting down the hallway. For some reason, I didn't want to hear whatever he had to say.

-"Don't worry. I have more self-control than you think."

I hadn't expected his, a vampire's, breath to be so warm as it brushed against my cheek. I felt the urge to lean in, to be closer to him. My heart was racing so fast, too fast, and my face was hot. What was going on? Suddenly a warm tongue was against my cheek, against my reopened wound. A strange sensation; a very strange one. I lost the fight not to snort and soon gave in to all-out laughter.

"I... how the hell do I respond to something like that?" I laughed. "It felt like a dog licked me."

Alucard was silent for a moment, merely quirking an eyebrow. It took me a minute to realize he was still rather close to my face, still staring at me intensely. I shifted a little bit, trying my best to read his face.

"A dog, hm? Now quite what I was going for," he finally responded, leaning back only a fraction of an inch. "Tell me, Red, are you a virgin?"

That question caught me very off guard.

"A-a what?" I sputtered, clearing my throat. "I, well, I mean... there was that one- er no, wait there was- nevermind..."

I silence myself, eyes immediately dropping down in shame as I felt my cheeks burn. Why did this matter right now, or at all, anyway?

"Nothing to fret, Red," he chuckled deeply, taking my chin between his index finger and thumb.

Another long minute of silence. Alucard was clearly trying to work something out in his head, though it seemed with every passing second, his face, his lips, grew closer to mine. What was going on? It's not like he hadn't been flirting with me since we met, but this seemed on a whole new level. But now here he was, seeming quite intent on kissing me. Suddenly, the image of Jake popped into my head and I started to back away. I hadn't noticed the figure standing in the bathroom doorway until Alucard was on the other side of the room, slumped against the wall.

"Jake!"I exclaimed, standing up way too fast.

Dizziness took my eyesight momentarily and I felt my knees give way. Someone caught and gently sat me back on the floor, though seemed to have no intention of releasing me. Once my vision returned, I earned Jake had saved me from collapsing.

"What the hell was he doing to you?" Jake snarled, checking me over for any obvious wounds before rebandaging my cheek.

"I-It's not like that," I mumbled, but I had to wonder who I was trying to convince: Myself or Jake?

A deep, rumbling chuckle caught both our attention and we looked at the shuddering vampire. His shoulders bounced with laughter and he slowly lifted his head.

"You don't get it, you stupid mutt," he snicked, putting his head back against the wall. "We've just won the lottery of a lifetime and you're more concerned about getting in his pants first."

My eyes flickered to Jake, whose face contorted with rage. Now that my friend was a werewolf, I wasn't sure how much I'd actually be able to retain his fury. My other concern was deciphering Alucard's words. The lottery? Who's getting in my pants? Jake seemed about to lunge for the vampire king, but the moment he was out of my grasp, his body convulsed and he was on his hands and knees.

Everyone's eyes turned to see Integra standing in my room, holding some sort of taser gun.

"Why is everyone so damn noisy?"-


	12. Chapter 12: Wednesday

Chapter 12:

"Ollie?"

I rolled over on my bed to face the doorway. Upon seeing it was Jake, I felt more inclined to actually sit up and fully face him. Jake's forehead creased when he came closer and his hand twitched, however merely sat on the bed beside me.

"Are you okay?"

I looked up at him skeptically for a minute. Am I okay? Jake perfectly well knew the answer to that, but probably thought it polite to ask.

"I don't know..." I mumbled, pulling my hair over my shoulder. "It's... a lot."

"Yeah... I thought being told I was a werewolf was harsh, but this is something else," Jake commented quietly, glancing over at me.

I cleared my throat. "Uh, y'know... you're calmer... not as energetic," I mumbled.

"Oh, yeah... might be the werewolf thing," he responded. "I don't mind, actually."

"So you... you're never gunna leave here?" I murmured. "Never return and have a normal life?"

"I think never is a strong word, but... probably," he sighed. "Think about how long Alucard has been here, Ollie. The prospects aren't good." He was quiet for a moment. "Besides, what I have to eat once a month? I think it's better that the Hellsings take care of the procurement."

I flopped backward on the bed, arms stretched out above my head so I could touch the blanket. This whole mess was spinning out of my control so fast it left me dizzy. My life has been relatively boring and straightforward for the past decade, now suddenly I couldn't find a single minute to myself to just breath and process. This situation was liable to give me an aneurysm if I wasn't careful, but then I guess not. An angel... a half angel... Did that mean one of my birth parents was an angel? And why did they give me up? Hard to imagine an angel unable to provide for a child... or maybe they didn't really want me...? I shook my head and rubbed my eyes.

"You sure you're okay? I'm sure what Alucard did must've-"

"Alucard didn't do anything bad," I grumbled, sitting up slowly. "Him testing my blood was the least painful test of all and the results were a hell of a lot faster," I snorted, looking at him now. "I'm just tired, Jake."

My friend was quiet for a long moment before finally standing. He seemed about to leave, but then turned toward me. Jake took my hand, sitting me up before cupping my cheek carefully with one hand.

"Get some sleep, yeah? It's been long and hard and I'd be lying if I said I thought it was going to get any easier," he said softly, thumb stroking my cheek only once before releasing his grip.

"Yeah, okay... mom..." I responded, offering a small smile as he went to the doorway. Jake stopped suddenly, hand on the doorknob to close it. The taller man turned and caught me with an intense stare.

"Don't trust Alucard, okay?" he warned suddenly. "Please just... don't let them do something like that again."

I furrowed my brow at him, however, he left before I could verbally respond. Why was Jake so against Alucard? Maybe the cat and dog fight against werewolves and vampires was true after all. WAs it simply biological or did the vampire king do something to personally offend Jake? As likely as the latter seemed, my brain couldn't give the subject a minute more thought before shutting down. Maybe things would calm down in the morning...

"Master Slater."

I woke up with a jolt, sitting straight up. Walter? I glanced at the clock on my nightstand. 11:30 a.m... I probably could have slept in all day, but knew Integra must have needed me if I was being woken by Walter.

"Good morning, Master Slater."

"Please, Ollie..." I mumbled sleepily, stretching. "I imagine Integra needs me?"

"Yes, Oliver," he answered. "She requests a lunch with you at noon."

I nodded blearily. "Yeah, okay... Can I shower?"

"Precisely why I woke up early," he responded, stepping out of the way as I stood. "Would you like to request anything?"

"Uh... surprise me," I mumbled, but then paused. "Scratch that. I've had enough surprises for a lifetime. Just some coffee and toast," I corrected, headed toward the bathroom. "Thanks, Walter."

"Of course, sir," he responded with a short bow before disappearing out the door.

Without truly being awake, I showered quietly. My brain wasn't too keen on rising, so I wasn't thinking about anything in particular as I washed. My eyes dropped to my chest scars, which I traced with a finger mindlessly. Alucard's face popped in my head and I recalled the time he saw me shirtless. He had seemed unaffected by my status and a faint blush made my cheeks hot. Not even Jake has seen me shirtless before or after the surgery. My friend had always been supportive of my choices involving my body and I always was and will always be grateful for that support. I thought about Sammy and made a poorly written mental note to tell Integra about him. The poor guy must be worried sick for Jake. They were so close, a cute couple, really. What a friend I was, jealous of what they shared. It felt like that was something I could never hope to achieve and honestly? It still felt like that. Especially now that I may be stuck in this manor until the day I die. Had I really lived my life so carelessly that this should be my fate?

I finally pulled myself out of that no-doubt endless thought process and stepped out of the shower. No point in being late to a meeting with Integra.

Stepping out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around my waist, I didn't even notice the figure sitting at the small table in the corner.

"Red."

I jumped and whipped around, holding onto my towel tightly.

"Alucard," I breathed, clutching my chest. "What the hell?"

He chuckled lightly, removing his sunglasses. "You're jumpy."

"Still not used to ethereal beings just appearing in my room, sorry," I grumbled, turning back toward the dresser and rummaging through my clothes. "Something you need?"

"Do you have freckles everywhere?"

The question caught me off guard and I slowly turned to look at him.

"No...? What kind of question is that?"

"A simple one... They're interesting. Indicative of being out in the sun," he said casually, leaning back in the chair.

"Er... I don't get as much sun as you think," I mumbled, pulling on a button up and proceeded to fiddle with the buttons.

"Here, let me."

Suddenly, he was in front of me, long slender fingers making quick work of my shirt.

"Th-thanks..."

"This meeting with my master. She wants to discuss living here," he told me lowly, fixing my collar. "If you're wise," he started, leaning down close to my eye lever, face once again in close proximity to my own, "you'll accept the offer. I know a thing or two about power being stripped away and this is by no means that."

"Wait, what do you mean- and of course he just slinks into the wall," I grumbled. "God forbid someone actually says what they mean before running off."

I was far too focused on Alucard's interesting visit to recall how to find the dining hall. By the time Walter located me and helped, it was ten past and Integra looked more surly than usual. I tentatively sat where the toast and coffee were laid out and waiting for Integra to move or say something.

"You're late."

As expected. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that," I responded quietly. "Was turned around."

The leader merely squinted her eyes at me before taking a sip of something. I took that as a sign she forgave me and I drank my coffee. Even though I only told Walter how to make mine once, he's done it perfectly every time.

"I have a plan," she started, cutting into her chicken, "for your life."

"Oh, my... That's intense," I mumbled, choking a little on my coffee.

"It looks a little something like this: You will have gun training, if only for your protection," she added quickly upon seeing my apprehension. "Effective immediately, you will move in permanently. If you so wish to travel, either Seras or Alucard must accompany you. Jake may as well, so long as one of the two is there. One other thing: Would you be willing to give blood to Alucard and Seras? You won't have to be bitten, of course, however, Alucard informs me that your blood has incredible restorative powers." She casually ate a mouthful of food, watching me closely. "Thoughts."

I could only stare at her, eyes wide and searching. Was she serious? Of course she was serious, this was Integra Hellsing, but my god did this seem like some sick joke. Where did I even start?

"Isn't this... all moving a little fast?" I inquired softly. "I-I don't want a gun or even training," I sputtered.

"This has nothing to do with want, Mr. Slater," she sighed. "You need protection and the best way to have that is by preparing yourself."

I shook my head. "What about my apartment? My job? I've been away for so long already and who knows if I even-"

"You no longer have a job," she interrupted. "I have contacted them already."

I blinked silently at her. She... what?

"And what did you say?"

"That you have a family emergency and had to return home indefinitely."

It was the casualty that bothered me the most. She had me fired from my job and expected me to pick up my life and drop it here. Then again, what choice did I really have? I looked up at her silently for such a long moment.


End file.
